You know, with all the scams and accusations on these forums, one thing truly boggles my mind -- the infrequent use of a simple phone call(s) to establish rapport between a buyer and seller, especially when they are both located in the same country.

Look, Bitcoin isn't anonymous, and while pseudo-anonymity is great and all, there's no real need for anonymity unless 1) you're a scammer, or 2) there's a risk of identity theft or unwarranted/un-welcomed surveillance.

So? Pick up the phone! Talk with each other. Let tone of voice fill in the gaps that text simply cannot. Best of all, hashing out the details of a transaction through a series of phone conversations would likely put to rest most doubts shared between genuinely honest sellers (e.g. "I'm not really comfortable showing an ID..."), thereby reducing the overall number of accusations or potential "scammer alerts" that appear on this forum. Yes, I know that there are ways to avoid being traced through a phone call, but at least it's a more personable medium of communication, and I think that things like tone of voice can be much better indicators of a person's true intentions.

I think the way business is typically conducted on this forum is a case-in-point example of the drawbacks of digital communication, and many have paid for it.